A Negative Outcome of Having Low Self-Esteem

[srfranci]

When I was growing up, the term "addict" was almost equivalent to the term "fiend" as in "dope-fiend." There was a sense of demons and craziness about it, and no one wanted to be called an addict. I have learned a lot about addiction and the addictive process since then from my dad who was an alcoholic. One of the things I learned is that addictions are extraordinarily common, one might even say pervasive in our society, and that they happen in the best of families. It is no shame, as many have since learned, to acknowledge having been addicted. Indeed, such acknowledgement is the first step toward recovery.

The primary, objective symptom of low self-esteem is a substance or a process addiction, or dependence on multiple addictions. There are many kinds, and they start with the substances: alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, illegal drugs like heroine or cocaine, plus a whole array of legal drugs, like stimulants, and tranquilizers such as Valium, etc. Addictions continue through what are called "process" addictions: being hooked on a form of behavior, like shopping, gambling, eating. There are also compulsive behavior addictions like sex addiction, or an addiction to romance or being in love, or needing to have a relationship.

One of the things I've learned about addiction is that it is a response, usually to pain or fear, and its purpose is always to make us feel better. I know for instance, that a drink relaxes the tension or insecurity we're feeling, so if one is good, several will be better. Eventually, there really aren't quite enough drinks to really do the trick, so we wind up drinking most, if not all the time. One reason one uses is to alter their mood, needless to say, for the better. Two, the trouble arises when our relationship to that which alters our mood becomes pathological, when we cannot do without it, which in return has "life-damaging consequences."

If you're recovering from addiction, you should be so proud of yourself and your strength to endure what has surely been a difficult struggle. However, for so many, the path to recovery, the trap of slipping self esteem can be an easy one to fall into. By rebuilding your self esteem every day, you can improve your chances of staying on the path to recovery.

Addictions are designed to take us out of the present moment in a flight from feeling and consciousness which we are experiencing as uncomfortable or painful. An argument can also be made that behind all addictions is a bigger, more significant primary addiction: that of our addiction to powerlessness and non-life.